(Washington, D.C.) – Congressman Wally Herger (R-CA), Ranking Member of the Ways & Means Subcommittee on Health, issued the following statement in response to today’s hearing on the House Democrat’s plan for government-run health care:

“In the five days since the House Democrats unveiled their plan for government-run health care, the American people have yet to see any concrete details about how much this will cost them.  With this year's federal deficit already approaching $2 trillion, we can’t afford the high cost of a massive new government-run program, and we can’t have an honest and open debate without acknowledging the price tag that accompanies it.  Along with the sticker shock that will occur when the price of the Democrat Leadership’s plan is made public, with more information the American people will begin to see the non-monetary costs of government-run health care: lower quality, less accessibility, and bureaucratic meddling in decisions that should be made by doctors and patients. 

“The plan gives very little detail about how it will be paid for, only mentioning unspecified tax increases ‘to be provided.’  Working families and small business deserve to know where the money is coming from.  Unfortunately, it's likely to come from tax increases that will hurt our economy during a recession but won’t come close to covering the long-term cost of government-run health care.  So the rest will be borrowed on the backs of our children and grandchildren, leaving them with a less effective health care system and a mountain of debt.  Hopefully we can find a way to work together and develop a bipartisan solution because, as President Obama said, ‘health care reform should not be a Democratic issue or a Republican issue, but an American issue.’”